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10 Questions with ... Pat Martin
August 7, 2018
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1) What was your first job in radio?
My very first job was at a tiny little country station called KZIQ in Ridgecrest, CA. It was during the semester break my first year at San Diego State. I saw an ad in Radio & Records, applied for the job, and somehow got it. (I found out later I was the sole applicant). I did "morning tractor drive," I was the MD, and I sold air time ... unsuccessfully. I never sold even a single spot. Sales was obviously not my thing.
2) I know you spent time at KGB/San Diego back in the day. When did you work there and what was your air shift and responsibilities?
I was hired at KGB in 1978 by a legendary programmer named Rick Leibert, who invented the KGB Chicken, the Skyshow, and the Homegrown album series. I was quite saddened to hear when passed away. I certainly owe him a great deal of gratitude for my radio career.
I spent about 10 years there, with a one-year break to work at KMET/L.A. I started out doing weekend overnights at KGB, then daytime weekends, then nights, then middays for about six or seven of those years. I did all kinds of stuff, you name it. I produced several of the KGB Skyshows, their annual fireworks extravaganza. I learned the radio business from a lot of very talented people who were very kind to me.
3) A big congrats on your 30th anniversary at KRXQ (98 Rock). Can you give us a few major highlights from the last 30 years that still stand out for you?
Thank you. There are so many highlights I don't know where to start. We've had a lot of fun over the years. Here's a couple:
I once interviewed Ozzy at the same time he was on the cover of Rolling Stone, touting the new "clean and sober" Ozzy ... and watched him snort coke and drink Jack Daniels during the entire interview. (Sorry, Ozzy!)
I went to a party at Lars Ulrich's home in the Bay Area. Lars was kind enough to give my wife and me a personal tour of the art work in his home, worth many millions and quite impressive.
In Sacramento, I am generally known as the guy who put Tesla back together. It happened in 2000. The guys had been fighting for years and I somehow convinced them to resurrect their career with a comeback show at The Arco Arena. My secret was nothing more than a few bottles of nice wine. The boys are still going at it to this day, and they thank me all the time.
Pat Martin at a Tesla rehearsal!4) Is 98 Rock doing anything special to celebrate your 30 years rocking Sacramento?
Yes, they're throwing me a party featuring "Pat Martin's All Stars" my roving band of merry musicians that include members of Tesla, Papa Roach, Oleander, Cake, Danzig, and David Bowie. We usually get together to raise money for charity, but this time we're just celebrating my 30th. Should be fun! On-air, my guests will be legendary Rolling Stone writer and editor Ben Fong-Torres, local TV celebrity Mark S. Allen, Tesla's Frank Hannon, and Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg.
Jacoby Shaddix of Papa Roach and Dave Buckner (original drummer for Papa Roach), modeling Pat Martin's 30th Anniversary T-shirt5) Give us some of the most effective midday music features you've done and still do at 98 Rock?
I haven't done a lot of special features regularly over the years. I've done All-Request Lunch for a long time and we do see a spike in the noon hour, so I suppose you could say it works. Sometimes the best music features are the ones done spontaneously, like Jim Ladd used to do on KMET. I try my best to spotlight new music that I actually like. I think I'm the only jock in this market who actually plays and talks about new music!
6) I would also imagine you've interviewed a few rock stars in your time. What were some of the most memorable interviews and why?
I did an interview with the late Chester Bennington of Linkin Park that was run on all of the Entercom Rock stations. We recorded in Casey Kasem's studio ... I sat in his chair and talked into his mic. For me that was really cool.
When I was at KMET, I did my radio show live from Van Halen's dressing room at The Forum in Los Angeles. This was right when Sammy had joined the band, and the party was on!
I've had both Joe Satriani and Steve Vai come into the studio with their portable rack of gear and play live. For me, being a guitar guy, those were always fun.
The most memorable interview I ever did was really just a 45-minute conversation I had with Pete Townshend. To me he is the consummate spokesman for rock 'n' roll, and talking with him you get to experience the passion and intelligence he has for it.
An early 98 Rock air staff photo7) You're still an integral part of the 98 Rock music decisions. Who else is involved in the process and what are the major factors that contribute to adding a new record?
For now, it's pretty much Vince Richards and me. He's a really knowledgeable and intelligent rock guy, and nothing's really changed about our decision-making process. We look for the best songs we can play that will help us attract and keep listeners.
8) What's your take on current Active Rock music and the Rock format in general?
Right now there happens to be a handful of songs I really like, but overall we're still waiting for "the next big thing" to come along and revitalize Rock radio. We're doing okay, but we need to do much better. It would be nice to see rock acts emerge on the charts again in a major way.
9) What are your three favorite artists or songs of this year and why?
I like The Struts "Body Talks." It's a fun song, and I saw them open for The Foo Fighters ... they brought it!
One of my personal favorites is "Black Wedding" by In This Moment. I think a song is good if it makes you want to play it over and over, and that's one for me.
The new Imagine Dragons song "Natural" is catchy too ... I won't be surprised if it becomes a big hit at Rock Radio and Alternative.
10) Finally ... what do you like to do for fun and relaxation when you're not in "radio" mode?
I do as much as I can to get away from radio. I listen to a lot of music that 98 Rock probably wouldn't play. I've been getting into vinyl more and more, re-establishing my record collection that was once at about 5,000 albums. Once in a while I still get together with my band "Animal House," which I've been in for 28 years. Vince DiFiore from Cake is our trumpet player and Rob Sabino, the legendary keyboard player from David Bowie and Todd Rundgren fame, also plays in our band. We have a blast. Travel is my main escape from radio. My wife and I have been all over Europe, and our favorite vacation spot is Maui.
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